The grand palaces, state buildings, pike concessions, foreign structures, attractions, Cascades and all that was the 1904 World's Fair had to be removed. Designed as a temporary paradise of man's finest achievements and goals. The fairgrounds as well as Forest Park would have to be returned to a condition better than before the Fair. It took 1,000,000 dollars and three years to accomplish this.
Landscape architect George Kessler was assigned to carry out the restoration plan.
The Chicago Wrecking Co. bid 386,000 dollars to demolish and remove the debris, paying in increments of 100,000 dollars every 6 weeks. The large exhibit palaces, stayed up until the spring of 1905, then were torn down, mountains of staff and wood had to be transported to the landfill for disposal. The same train trains that delivered materials to the Fair and gave it life, now carried its removal. The live stock barns were the first to go.
The demolition contract did not include the State, Nation and Pike buildings.
While the massive palaces were easily and quickly removed, the Pike structures, including the observation wheel were not so easily disposed of. Many stood for months delaying the restoration of the area.
The State buildings for the most part were not built of staff, and thus many were sold and relocated to different locations. Given the considerable cost of these buildings, it is amazing to hear that some State buildings were sold for less than a hundred dollars. Some of the buildinMaine’s hunting lodge made of native timbers and without nails became Dobyn’s Hall, the first building of the School of the Ozarks in Hollister, Missouri. The pavilions from Nevada, New Jersey and New Hampshire were turned into homes in the St. Louis area.
The Inside Inn was done by the company owning the structure and was started even before closing day.
Because the 1904 World's Fair was profitable, the Exposition Company built a grand building as a gift to the City of St. Louis. The Jefferson Memorial now stands on what would have was the main entrance to the Fair. It is now the Missouri Historical Museum. It was dedicated in 1913.
Built on the site of the Missouri Building (which had burned down), the Exposition also constructed a World's Fair Pavilion as a second gift to the City of St. Louis. Construction was finished in 1910.
The Sculptures- "Painting" and "Sculpture" what were originally staff constructs were recreated in marble. These sculptures now flank the Main entrance to the St. Louis Art Museum.
The grand Flight Cage was saved and renovated. Today, it remains a bird aviary as part of the St. Louis Zoo.
26 "heroic size" plaster statues were purchased from St. Louis World's Fair for the city of Dallas. They are subsequently placed in various spots at Fair Park, including atop the bandstand and near the race track.
A few years later, two statues of lions were donated to Penn State after they were used in the Pennsylvania Mines Exhibit at the St. Louis World’s Fair in 1904. They were placed atop the columns at the main campus entrance on College and Allen streets.
